Insulting revisions to Wikipedia entry on Hillsborough made from Government computers

Cabinet Office investigating how Wikipedia entry on Hillsborough disaster was
revised from Government computers

Sheila Coleman, of the Hillsborough Justice Campaign, told the Liverpool Echo that the families of the victims would demand a formal inquiryPhoto: PA

By Agencies

7:18PM BST 24 Apr 2014

Government computers have been used to insert insulting revisions to Wikipedia entries on the Hillsborough disaster.

A series of insulting revisions to the site began on the 20th anniversary of the 1989 tragedy, when "Blame Liverpool fans" was anonymously added to the Hillsborough section of the online encyclopedia.

Computers on Whitehall's secure intranet were used again in 2012 to change the phrase "You'll never walk alone" to "You'll never walk again" and later "You'll never w*** alone".

Logs of the IP addresses of computers used to post the revisions revealed they wee made by computers based in government departments including the Department for Culture, Media and Sport, the Treasury and the Office of the Solicitor General.

The Cabinet Office is now investigating the issue to find out how the revisions were made.

Among the other amendments made from government computers includes changes to the phrase "This is Anfield", which appears above the players' tunnel at the club's ground, to "This is a S***hole".

The words "nothing for the victims of the Heysel stadium disaster" were also added to a description of the Hillsborough memorial at the Reds' stadium.

On another occasion, the description of a Bill Shankly statue on the Anfield Wikipedia page was revised to change the well-known quote "He made the people happy" to "He made a wonderful lemon drizzle cake".

Sheila Coleman, of the Hillsborough Justice Campaign, told the Liverpool Echo that the families of the victims would demand a formal inquiry.

She said: "We're still in the inquests and we've sat listening to the most heart-breaking accounts of that day, and then you hear about things like this. It's absolutely appalling, disgraceful.

"I'm just completely appalled, my God. It's shocking that these comments came from within the government, no matter how spurious.

"The fact is that these changes came from within the government and that's very saddening. It warrants an investigation and we will be seeking formal advice from our legal team."

A spokesman for the Cabinet Office told the Liverpool Echo said: "This is a matter that we will treat with the utmost seriousness and are making urgent inquiries.

"No one should be in any doubt of the government's position regarding the Hillsborough disaster and its support for the families of the 96 victims and all those affected by the tragedy."

Margaret Aspinall of the Hillsborough Family Support Group said she was "saddened" and "frightened" by the news.

She said: "I don't even know how to react, it's just so sad.

"I hear something like that and it upsets me a great deal, it makes me incredibly sad. I'm glad somebody has found out about it but I'm frightened to be honest that we haven't known until now."